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Dimebag Riff Crawl Into

Here is a great Dimebag riff that will help you with your up and down picking as well as slides and some vibrato bends without using the whammy bar. I will have the tab as well as myself playing the riff in a short video below. This song is in Drop-D Tuning. Here is the tab for you.

Click to enlarge


Here is a video of myself playing for you to watch. It will help you see where the bends and slides are.



I will create more videos in the future. As for now practice this intro and remember to use up and down picking. Don't cheat.

Joe Satriani - Circles

Here is a really great song to learn how to play. This tab is from some place on the internet. I would have made the tab myself but this is close enough. If you listen to the song you can hear where you might need to change some things around. this is the acoustic beginning of the song before it goes into Jo's guitar solo and heavier part of the song. Here is a link to listen to the song. This is a live version so he has a more elaborate beginning than what I tab for you here. Right when the drums start and then he plays is where the tab starts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APUZj-nV2lE

Click to enlarge

P.M. stands for palm mute. You mute the strings with your picking hand so make the notes sound cut them off to stop the sound.

Again I apologize for the quality of the tab. Consider it your opportunity to use your ears instead of relying on only your eyes.

Silent Lucidity - Queensryche

Today I am going to post a beautiful song. Silent Lucidity by Queensryche. Everyone at one point new about this song but it has fallen away from popularity and I am glad in a way because over hearing something takes away from it eventually.

This is a beautiful acoustic guitar song. You don't have to use an acoustic of course but it always sounds better. This song is a great exercise for using your fingers to pick instead of the pick. You should rotate from your middle finger and your thumb with your right hand. Left if you are a lefty I suppose. You could use whatever fingers feel comfortable but I use my middle finger and thumb. Maybe some would use there pointing finger and thumb it really does not matter. If you want to you can even use your pick which I actually do most of the time. For a beginner it is an easy song to toy with picking with your fingers however.

Anyway, here is the tab for Silent Lucidity. Again, always click on the image to enlarge it.


It is just the first run through of the beginning of the song before it breaks and the drums kick in. Take your time with this and use it to learn how to play soft and accurately. Once you have that accomplished you can even use this song to practice singing while you play if you are at all interested in doing that. I love every part of this song. You have to remember that there are two guitarists in Queensryche, as well as a bass player, but it should sound fine if you play it properly.

Have fun with this one.

I also want to add that if you have any suggestions or requests for some song tabs just let me know in the comments. You have to remember I am a picky musician so if I don't like your request sorry. That is a reminder for all of you wannabe misfits who want to learn "Smoke on the Water". Get real!

More clues that no one talks about

I keep thinking of what I do when I play guitar and something else came to my mind. Stretching. No one ever really talks about stretching. The first thing you should do before any type of activity is to stretch. This is just as much true for a musician as it is for an athlete.

Before I play I always open my hand as far as I can and hold it for a few seconds. Then I make a fist and hold it for a few seconds. I do this a half dozen times or so before I grab my guitar. I also make a fist and roll my hands in a circular motion before I once again stretch my open and closed hands.

The important thing that you are doing is allowing your wrists and hands to perform there natural motion. This is very important so that you do not get cramps or the most dreaded for all guitarists. Carpal Tunnel or how every you spell it.

After stretching I like to do the Dimebag warm up. It is a simple exercise that will help your fingers gain strength and endurance. Simply grab the guitar and first tap on and pull off your first and second finger on the first two frets up and down the strings. Strike each string one time up and the next string down as you progress. D means down pick and U means up pick.



If the image is too small just click on it to open it up larger.

Move up the neck as far as you can stand it. Push yourself a bit but don't hurt yourself. When your notes no longer sound right don't worry. It is about gaining strength not accuracy. Accuracy will come more and more and you will be able to go further and further up the neck and eventually the entire neck up and down.

After using your first and second fingers take a break and do the stretches. When you feel rested you can then use your second and third fingers on the same notes and the same frets as far as you can go as well then repeat the rest and stretching before moving on to your third and forth fingers. DO NOT NEGLECT THE THIRD AND FOURTH FINGERS!!!

Over time you will get very strong hands and you will be able to play longer and longer without hurting. I know this exercise is boring but force yourself to do it each day you play and you will benefit from it.

To take things further you can take a scale you like and move it up and down the neck for the same effect.